Saint Nicholas Monastery, Tel Aviv

Located in the old city of Jaffa, near the harbor of the ancient Mediterranean port city, this Armenian monastery dating to the first millennium AD consists of a large multi-story complex that includes a church and living quarters.

Named for Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of sailors, the monastery gave shelter to pilgrims and seamen looking for a rest on their journey for many centuries. In the 1700s, it was expanded and fortified, and despite not being functional anymore, remains under the jurisdiction of the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem who rents out parts of the complex.

During the Napoleonic Campaign in Egypt at the turn of the 19th century, the French army requested the aid of the Armenian priests at the monastery. After the clerics used their secret medicines to cure some of the soldiers, Napoleon personally thanked the Armenian patriarch and gifted him with his own tent and sword. His visit to the site was depicted in the "Bonaparte Visiting the Plague Victims of Jaffa" painting by Antoine-Jean Gros.